A45 build quality rears its head!
Discussion
I'd convinced myself that my A45 was clear of all the chatter about rattling trim and loose panels...... until I took a drive down to my local MB for the Performance Tour thingy they had going on.
The weather was shocking on Saturday and there was standing water on many local roads. The Tour was a flop and i angrily left the dealership having achieved nothing but clocking up 30 minutes of standing around alone and slightly damp from the walk from my car. As i left the car park i had to negotiate a flooded area before the main carriageway that was about 10" deep in my estimation. I ploughed through it, possibly slightly quicker than normal due to my mood but by no means was it excessive. I got through the flood ok but as soon as i turned on to the dual carriageway there was an awful grinding noise from under the front of the car.
Long story short:
I limped back to MB following the 2 mile 1-way system and managed to get a tech from the workshop to get my ill car up on to a ramp. What we found was:
The undertray was hanging down from just in front of the exhaust. It appears to only be made of a thick felt type material and had ripped from the plastic poppers that hold it to the car.
On top of that the arch liners were popped out from behind the arch lips! They aren't secured by anything at all it seems!
The passenger side front brake duct was also hanging down and was being dragged under the car. Shockingly they are only attached to the wishbones by 2 x cable ties!! The force of the water had broken one of the cable ties and had left the plastic box-like thing trailing next to the wheel.
The tech was good enough to cable tie the duct back on and managed to fashion a cable tie support for the ripped under tray but i left less than happy!
When i got home i asked myself a whole bunch of questions:
Why is a £50k car held together by cable ties? Why is the under tray made from felt? Why is the trim just placed behind the arches and not secured in place?
More importantly, what if the duct had come away on a faster stretch of road or on the motorway and had damaged the brakes? It's a fairly sturdy bit of plastic and could easily have got caught in the brakes, wheel or suspension. What of my son and / or wife was in the car with me and something had happened? What else have i not seen?
I've written to MB customer services as i feel the car is unfit for purpose. Your thoughts? Ive never had a car where there have been such poor fitting used!
The weather was shocking on Saturday and there was standing water on many local roads. The Tour was a flop and i angrily left the dealership having achieved nothing but clocking up 30 minutes of standing around alone and slightly damp from the walk from my car. As i left the car park i had to negotiate a flooded area before the main carriageway that was about 10" deep in my estimation. I ploughed through it, possibly slightly quicker than normal due to my mood but by no means was it excessive. I got through the flood ok but as soon as i turned on to the dual carriageway there was an awful grinding noise from under the front of the car.
Long story short:
I limped back to MB following the 2 mile 1-way system and managed to get a tech from the workshop to get my ill car up on to a ramp. What we found was:
The undertray was hanging down from just in front of the exhaust. It appears to only be made of a thick felt type material and had ripped from the plastic poppers that hold it to the car.
On top of that the arch liners were popped out from behind the arch lips! They aren't secured by anything at all it seems!
The passenger side front brake duct was also hanging down and was being dragged under the car. Shockingly they are only attached to the wishbones by 2 x cable ties!! The force of the water had broken one of the cable ties and had left the plastic box-like thing trailing next to the wheel.
The tech was good enough to cable tie the duct back on and managed to fashion a cable tie support for the ripped under tray but i left less than happy!
When i got home i asked myself a whole bunch of questions:
Why is a £50k car held together by cable ties? Why is the under tray made from felt? Why is the trim just placed behind the arches and not secured in place?
More importantly, what if the duct had come away on a faster stretch of road or on the motorway and had damaged the brakes? It's a fairly sturdy bit of plastic and could easily have got caught in the brakes, wheel or suspension. What of my son and / or wife was in the car with me and something had happened? What else have i not seen?
I've written to MB customer services as i feel the car is unfit for purpose. Your thoughts? Ive never had a car where there have been such poor fitting used!
Sheepshanks said:
I very much doubt that MB claim one of the purposes of the car is to be driven at speed through 10" of water.
Where did I write 'at speed'? I was probably doing 15mph or there abouts. Have you never hit standing water on the motorway?
Aside from that, would you be happy that brake ducts, or any parts for that matter are only cable tied to your £50k car? Would you be happy buying a new car that had cable tied wing mirrors?
Edited by ecain63 on Monday 10th November 17:39
Robb F said:
ecain63 said:
Aside from that, would you be happy that brake ducts, or any parts for that matter are only cable tied to your £50k car? Would you be happy buying a new car that had cable tied wing mirrors?
My car is held together with cable ties, but if I'd spent 50k on one then cable ties is taking the piss.The question i need to ask the customer service rep is: would they be happy owning a car worth near £50k that had items cable ties to it? And then, would they be 100% happy having their children ride in the car in bad weather on a fast road? I think the honest answer will determine the solution.
Either a sound adjustment of the current fittings or the car goes back. Simple as.
I'm happy that the car is most probably safe to drive in most situations. However, winter is upon us and the south is often wetter than it is dry. I have a 5 month old son and there is a niggle that even though the chances are slim of it happening again and causing damage it's still a chance where it wouldn't be with another car. I'm paying over the odds for an inferior car it would seem also so this build quality issue only adds to the growing resentment.
It's an undeniably cracking car, but not for the money given the build quality. And the fact that bits are just tied on is verging on being laughed at by MB for falling for the sales pitch! 'lets see how many mugs we can sell this bodge job to!'
I'm happy that the car is most probably safe to drive in most situations. However, winter is upon us and the south is often wetter than it is dry. I have a 5 month old son and there is a niggle that even though the chances are slim of it happening again and causing damage it's still a chance where it wouldn't be with another car. I'm paying over the odds for an inferior car it would seem also so this build quality issue only adds to the growing resentment.
It's an undeniably cracking car, but not for the money given the build quality. And the fact that bits are just tied on is verging on being laughed at by MB for falling for the sales pitch! 'lets see how many mugs we can sell this bodge job to!'
ManiacGT said:
This is where people forget that this is a 20k car with a big engine and extras taking it over 40k.
It's built just the same as the 20k car.
There are similar complaints in the VW camp where 30k golf R drivers are complaining about quality. The golf is a 16k car with extras taking it over 30k. It's built just the same as the 16k car.
I get your point and it is fair to a degree. What if it had been a £150k+ S63 then? Could you say the same given it's the same as the basic S class?It's built just the same as the 20k car.
There are similar complaints in the VW camp where 30k golf R drivers are complaining about quality. The golf is a 16k car with extras taking it over 30k. It's built just the same as the 16k car.
cho said:
Cable ties should not be used to attach brake ducts or any part to a car whether it be 10k or 50k. They are used to attach cables and hoses etc which are not stressed. Strange how nobody picked up on the felt undertray and thought it was much more relevant to be sarcastic to the op. I hope it wasn't really felt! If that's the case it won't last much through 1" of water never mind 10"
It may or may not be felt exactly but it's the nearest material i can think of that resembles what is under the car. The fact that the material itself has ripped is proof that it is not fit for the job.Cheap shot there! Wow.
Why invite a customer to a Performance Tour, with an allocated time slot if you're not going to stick to it or even bother to speak to the customer. Fact is they were only interested in the toffs from sandbanks and not the 33yr old in the A45.
The C63 meet was an invitation also as id contributed considerably to the forum when I had the C63. When it came to chatting and photographing the cars I was told to move my car out of the car park. All thr other owners got interviews and I got moved asside. Even the M3 got a slice of the cake. The lady from Topcats was the one who pointed out that I had been ousted from the group and offered to host me at the venue. Very nice of her too.
Maybe im looking into it too much but the above highlights how some (maybe most) AMG owners feel the need to fit the image and avoid the guys who are just genuine enthusiasts. At least in person anyway. Sounds like a bloody Aston Martin club!
Why invite a customer to a Performance Tour, with an allocated time slot if you're not going to stick to it or even bother to speak to the customer. Fact is they were only interested in the toffs from sandbanks and not the 33yr old in the A45.
The C63 meet was an invitation also as id contributed considerably to the forum when I had the C63. When it came to chatting and photographing the cars I was told to move my car out of the car park. All thr other owners got interviews and I got moved asside. Even the M3 got a slice of the cake. The lady from Topcats was the one who pointed out that I had been ousted from the group and offered to host me at the venue. Very nice of her too.
Maybe im looking into it too much but the above highlights how some (maybe most) AMG owners feel the need to fit the image and avoid the guys who are just genuine enthusiasts. At least in person anyway. Sounds like a bloody Aston Martin club!
Lost soul said:
Any way , back on topic , its not just merc , I went through a deep puddle on night my Audi a5 and it managed to unclip the plastic undertray , simple fix and no real damage done , but 10 " of standing water is best avoided
Agreed. I normally would but weather, mood, time restraints, lack of other available route meant I had to negotiate it somehow. 10" isn't that much. Only half way up the wheel.I cam see the print in the handbook and they probably have me banged to rights. I can still have a moan about it though!!
Odd thing is, ive asked a couple of guys on the A45 forums if their ducts are cable tied on and so far the few that have looked appear to have cars that's ducts are bolted on. So, mine is apparently different! I'll need to investigate further. Might have been a change in build that mine didnt get.
Odd thing is, ive asked a couple of guys on the A45 forums if their ducts are cable tied on and so far the few that have looked appear to have cars that's ducts are bolted on. So, mine is apparently different! I'll need to investigate further. Might have been a change in build that mine didnt get.
Grandfondo said:
ecain63 said:
Grandfondo said:
gaz1234 said:
Part ex it
But take your own lube! 
Remagel2507 said:
A family friends wife just took delivery of her new C Class company car a few weeks ago. A few days after it was delivered all the warning lights came on but the car still drove, dealer didn't find anything did a reset and gave the car back. A few days after that the car would not start at all everything was dead, dealer recovered it and last I heard were arguing that the main wiring loom has been tampered with as there are cut wires and electrical tape everywhere - last I heard car was still there while they decide what to do next.
Eddie slightly O/T but did the original reg of your C63 start with SD60? One has just appeared locally that looks exactly like yours; pre facelift, red, carbon bits and black wheels.
Yeah, sd60ysk. In Yorkshire? Eddie slightly O/T but did the original reg of your C63 start with SD60? One has just appeared locally that looks exactly like yours; pre facelift, red, carbon bits and black wheels.
Edited by ecain63 on Friday 14th November 07:17
Remagel2507 said:
ecain63 said:
Yeah, sd60ysk. In Yorkshire?
Yep that was the one, came past me in Bradford I knew I had only ever seen one C63 like that but I couldn't remember till I came on here. Was it standard when you sold it? It sounded a little different to the last one I heardEdited by ecain63 on Friday 14th November 07:17
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